Why Should I Care about You?
by Rui Shimizu
Summary: Was it possible for Asahina to fall for the guy she disliked the most? Would it be possible for Togami to properly express his feelings while adamantly opposing becoming intimate with Kirigiri? Would Naegi and Fukawa just sit idly by as their love interests fell for completely different people! Of course not! These, and other conflicts unfold in the coming chapters (also on ao3).
1. Chapter 1

**Yo! If you are reading TDR and wondering where the heck the update is, don't worry! The next chapter will be out on January 1st (WOO! New Year! :D). Whenever I didn't have inspiration for that pile of junk, I worked on this one. I hope you still manage to enjoy this story, and please don't take it seriously! ^^**

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><p>"Absolutely not," said Kyouko Kirigiri to her father.<p>

"Please at least consider it? We'll be able to take care of the others for the rest of their lives! You don't even have to-"

Jin Kirigiri, the current headmaster of Hope's Peak Academy, stopped his pleading once he realized that his daughter had walked out of his office.

"Kyoukooooo!" He yelled, much to Kyouko's chagrin. She could hear him from outside the office. Her mantra of "just ignore him" wasn't holding up at the moment.

"Hey, it's Kirigiri-san!"

Kyouko turned to find the source of the cheerful voice, which turned out to belong to Makoto Naegi. He was smiling and carrying what looked to be a boxed tea set. Celestia Ludenberg stood near him, though she seemed to be slightly further in front of him.

"Good day, Miss Kirigiri," said Celestia. Kyouko nodded.

"Good day to you, too, Naegi-kun, Yasuhiro-san," Kyouko responded, calling Celestia by her least favored name.

"Miss Kirigiri," began Celes. Kyouko noticed the irritated twitch of her eyebrows. "I thought I asked you not to use that name when referring to me."

"Sorry," she said. Naegi thought that she didn't really sound very sorry at all...

"In any case, it looks like you just left another meeting with the headmaster. Did he want to talk about Togami again?"

It seems that Kyouko and Celes knew just the right things to say in order to annoy each other. Kyouko sighed.

"Yes," she said in response. "He's still trying to get me to get closer to Togami-kun."

Makoto knew this, but it still irked him to hear them mentioning Togami. It especially annoyed him whenever Kyouko talked about him, even when she was expressing her irritation. Makoto knew it was silly to be jealous of Togami like that, but each time Kyouko spoke about him, she was thinking about him. It's not unheard of for someone to change their opinions of someone they hate...

"Mister Naegi, what exactly are you thinking about?" Celes called out to him from further ahead. She and Kyouko had walked pretty far past Makoto while he was lost in thought.

"Ah, nothing!" Makoto yelled to them as he clutched the tea set he volunteered to carry. As he quickened his pace, he walked past a certain athletic duo.

"Ah, it's Naegi-kun!" Aoi Asahina exclaimed as she saw the boy. Sakura Oogami nodded and looked at the box that he was carrying. Judging by the rumor that she's heard recently and the fact that he was catching up to Celestia, Sakura was able to guess what was going on.

"It seems that Miss Ludenberg has received another gift from her secret admirer," Sakura stated.

"Jeez," began Aoi. "Celes is so lucky! I wish I had a secret admirer."

Sakura was well aware of Aoi's insecurities regarding males, and although she tries to tell her that her worrying is unnecessary, Aoi still seems to wish for another form of companionship.

"Asahina-yan," began Sakura. "Worry not. In time, you'll encounter the one you're destined to be with."

"Yeah, yeah," Aoi responded. She didn't mean to sound rude, but Sakura always said the same thing when it came to guys. For once, she wished that Sakura would consider her circumstances. Sakura already found the one she loved, and Aoi just wanted it to be her turn!

"Ack," said Aoi, snapping out of her trance. She looked up to apologize to who she bumped into, but he managed to beat her in responding.

"Tch. Watch where you walk, plebeian," snapped the unmistakable voice. Aoi backed up and continued looking at Byakuya Togami, trying to think of something to snap back. He walked past her before she could.

"Don't bother hurting yourself trying to come up with a response," he said as he walked away. Aoi frowned and stared at him.

"Jerkwad!" Aoi yelled. Sakura observed the exchange. Although she was tempted to stop Togami and ask him to apologize, she couldn't help but wonder why he let her walk into him. Togami was in no way oblivious to his surroundings, so why wouldn't he notice someone walking right in front of him? Furthermore, why didn't he say anything or try to stop her. Asahina had been having problems with guys bothering her... Was Togami that kind of guy? If so, Sakura would never forgive him for adding to the harassment!

"Sakura-chan?" Aoi asked. "Are you worried about something? You've been kinda quiet."

"Nothing," replied Sakura. "I simply became lost in thought."

"Hm... Alright," said Aoi, unsure if she believed that completely. Suddenly, a wild Touko Fukawa appeared.

"Ah, Fukawa-chan! If you're looking for Togami, he just walked-"

"I'm not interested in your sweet talking!" Touko yelled in response. "How dare you bump into my White Knight?!"

Asahina was shocked. "What sweet talk?! And it's not like I said trying to bump into him!"

"Whether you were trying to or not, you better apolo-ch!" Touko sneezed. Or, rather, she was stopped in the middle of her sneeze by a pair of slender fingers pinching her nose.

"Fukawa. I need you to come with me," stated Togami as he pulled her by the nose, hardly giving her a choice in the matter.

"Ye... YES!" Touko exclaimed in a nasal voice.

"Hah! Are you two on your way to accept your 'Worst Couple' award?" Aoi managed to make a timely comeback as repayment for his earlier jab. The two ignored it, though.

"It seems that he was around at a pretty convenient time," Sakura stated matter-of-factly.

"Yeah, I guess," said Aoi. "But... wasn't he going in the other direction?"

Meanwhile, Togami and Touko managed to make it to the library, and far enough away from Asahina.

"Hopefully that display made her forget the previous comment I made," Togami murmured. He didn't appreciate that he had to get his hands dirty like that, but he also didn't regret doing it, since it got the job done. Touko sat at a table and watched him as he thought to himself.

"Thank you for stopping _her,_ Byakuya-sama!" Touko expressed her gratitude.

"I don't recall allowing you to use my name so casually," said Togami. Touko flinched at his words.

"I-I'm sorry, Byaku- Togami-sama," Touko apologized. Togami sighed.

"You shouldn't bother worrying about that Swimming Idiot," said Touko.

"I wasn't worrying about that," Togami lied. "Besides, it doesn't seem right for someone who got a 62 on their latest test to call anyone else an idiot."

"Uwa!" Touko exclaimed. "Well, y-you see, I was kinda s-s-sick that day and-"

"I'm not interested in girls that make excuses," Togami said as he prepared to leave.

"Wait, Byakuya-sama!" Touko stopped him. "Where are you going?"

"Hmph," he began. He was prepared to respond saying that he didn't need to tell her that, but he realized that telling the truth might actually stop her from coming along. Togami turned to Touko with a smug smile.

"I'm going to meet with Kyouko Kirigiri," he said. "Don't follow me."

"K-Kirigiri?!" Touko exclaimed as he left the library. Kyouko Kirigiri?! She's heard rumors, but she didn't think they were true! Her White Knight... and Kyouko Kirigiri?! Touko thought about her long, flowing hair, sharp lilac eyes, and mysterious demeanor and realized that there was no way she could compete with her!

"Jeez, Kirigiri-san!" A new, male voice spoke out in the library. Touko tried to quiet her freaking out. Her efforts were rendered futile, since he managed to notice her there.

"Hi... You didn't hear that, right, Fukawa-san?" Makoto asked her. Touko didn't respond immediately. Does this boring guy have an interest in Kirigiri? Naturally, he'd never compare to her White Knight, but maybe, just maybe... If Kirigiri somehow fell for Naegi...

"You!" Touko yelled as she walked towards him. Makoto stood shocked at her sudden outburst.

"Ye... Yeah, Fukawa-san...?"

"I might have an idea that'll benefit the both of us..."


	2. Chapter 2

"Ah! I forgot to say good job on your test earlier, Sakura-chan!" Aoi and Sakura sat at their usual table for dinner. A few students in the Reserve Course sat and observed them. Even though the two girls found it somewhat odd, they didn't mind too much. After all, it's not like they were going to try to cause trouble.

"An 81… even so, there's still room for improvement, and not necessarily just in my case," Sakura looked sternly at her friend. Aoi sighed.

"I had that joined practice coming up, Sakura-chan," said Aoi, remembering her trip to a school that had just formed a swimming team. "Besides, a 49 isn't that bad. It shows that I knew about half of what was going on!"

This was Sakura's turn to sigh. She wasn't sure why her friend was so proud to fail. One of the kids at the Reserve Course table near them laughed aloud.

"Ha! It doesn't seem that the kids in the main course are that much smarter than us," said one girl.

Aoi stuck her tongue out at her. "Sorry we can't all use our time 'studying'," Aoi responded.

"Pfft," interjected a boy. "It sounds like you didn't even try. If we're going to be spending exorbitant amounts of money for _your_ sakes, you could at least make better grades. They shouldn't let idiots into such an elite school."

At this, Sakura stood up. Quickly, Aoi tried to step in front of her, but she wound up bumping into someone else and forgetting her comment about that "idiot" remark.

"Ah, sorry," she said to a boy with long, black hair and red eyes. He ignored her.

"Trying to make others feel inferior due to your own inadequacies? How typical," said the mystery boy. The Reserve Course boy stared in shock.

"You… Who are you to tell me what to do? Tryna call me a bully?"

"Frankly, yes," said the mystery boy. "You came here hoping to become a member of a small elite crowd, but in the end, you aren't even interesting enough to catch the attention of a simple student. Mediocre people like you seem to enjoy starting conflict among other mediocre people, hoping to feel some sort of semblance of importance, but in the end, that won't save either of you from your mediocrity. No one cares that you're here, and no one will care if you leave. In fact…" The group continued listening to the boy until he decided to walk away.

"Hey, punkass!" The Reserve Course boy yelled at him. "Where the hell do you think you're going?!"

"I'm leaving you," he began, "Because I realized that there's nothing interesting about you, and you'll never have anything interesting to contribute, so I shouldn't waste my time."

Aoi stared at the boy as he walked away. More confused than ever, she decided to just forget what happened.

"Well, Sakura-chan, I think I'm done here. See ya," she said with a wave. Sakura nodded in response. She couldn't help but wonder exactly who that boy was…

Meanwhile, Aoi had walked right out of the cafeteria and right into Togami. Again.

"Tch," the heir said. "I thought we went over this."

Aoi frowned. "Well, it's not like you can't warn someone, or even move out of the way."

"In any case," he started, "You failed your most recent test, didn't you? Since you did so horribly, the teacher has asked me to help you study for the retake."

"Eeeeh?" Aoi responded incredulously. "How did you know that? And why _you_? Why did he even ask you instead of Ishimaru-kun?"

"Ishimaru has three other students he volunteered to help. Plus," Togami unrolled a marked test. The number "97" was written and circled in red ink. "I'm fairly certain I'd be more than qualified to help you pass a simple retake."

Aoi opened her mouth to prepare a response, but then she realized that she had no rebuttal to that. But why does he want to help her all of a sudden? He must be planning something mean… Maybe he was going to tell her all the wrong answers, then make her fail again so he could make fun of her more! Hm… How could she get out of this…?

"Sakura-chan already said she'd help me," Aoi lied. Togami seemed to be processing the information…

"Alright," he replied before walking past her. "Good luck on your retake, plebeian."

Aoi was glad he didn't try to argue further, but didn't appreciate that he called her a plebeian.

"Jeez, what's with that guy?" Aoi asked herself once she knew he wasn't within earshot. That was very out of character for him. Why would he offer to help? Aoi didn't believe he was trying to prank her if he decided to leave it alone so easily… Maybe he was trying to be nice? But why would he do that?

Aoi felt her face grow hot.

"Aaagh! What am I thinking?!" Aoi yelled, garnering a bit of attention from a couple of her seniors. With an embarrassed laugh and a wave as if to say "everything's fine, and I'm not crazy," she ran back to the dorms.

Back in the cafeteria, Togami sat with Kyouko and Makoto… and Touko? She didn't normally eat dinner outside her room. Why was she here?

"Ah, hello, Bya-Togami-sama," Touko greeted him, then continued whispering to Makoto. What's that about? First Aoi rejects the kind offer that he didn't have to make, now even his most dedicated stalker is ignoring him? He began to wonder if he did anything to offend them recently. He didn't care too much if he actually did, but it still made him curious.

"Togami-kun," Kyouko greeted with a nod. He nodded back at her, if only to be somewhat civil, and to keep her from being unnecessary offended.

"So, how much longer do you intend to let your father boss you around?" Failed step one. One of Kyouko's eyebrows twitched in irritation.

"I'm not letting him boss me around," Kyouko tried to hide the irritation in her voice. "I've been telling him that I'm not interested in participating in the creation of another Togami family member."

Touko spat out her soda in shock, causing her nearby classmates to flinch away from her. "WHA—" she began, but stopped herself. She reluctantly resumed talking to Makoto and cleaning up the mess. Luckily for them, the cafeteria was too loud for too many people to take notice. Well, besides the Reserve Course people that were paying extra attention to them. Togami would bribe them to keep quiet about the matter later.

"Anyway," continued Kyouko, "He keeps bothering me about it. I've already told him that I'm not interested in this at all, but he won't drop it."

Togami sighed sympathetically. "I, too, wish that my father would stop trying to make me consider this now."

"So, it seems that we agree on something," said Kyouko. This didn't seem too unusual. Whenever it came to not having to associate with each other, Togami and Kyouko agreed often. It's not that they really _hated_ each other, but they didn't like each other very much either. It was complicated.

"Yeah. No offense, but you're definitely not my type," Togami said jokingly before he realized the implications in that statement. Kyouko's brow raised.

"I didn't realize it was possible for you to have a type," said Kyouko.

"Tch… don't go reading into what people say like you always do," Togami commanded, trying to play off that statement.

"I can't help what you reveal when you speak," said Kyouko before she walked away. Togami sighed. He didn't have a type. Or, at least, he was pretty sure he didn't. Makoto couldn't help but latch on to the latter part of their conversation.

"So, Togami-kun," Makoto tried to begin the question naturally, "_Do_ you have a type? I mean, is there anything in a girl that you like?" Of course not, Togami wanted to reply. Buuuuut… He felt that Fukawa might be listening. Knowing her, she's probably getting closer to Naegi in order to more easily bother me, he thought. He'd probably just say something random.

"Girls with brown hair," he said simply before walking away. What about girls with brown hair? Makoto didn't get the chance to ask. Well, at least Kirigiri-san doesn't really fit that description… But he didn't think Togami-kun would just stop at something so shallow.

Makoto turned to address Touko, who had been staring at her braids and smiling widely…

"I have brown hair, don't I?" Touko asked him expectantly. Nervously, Makoto nodded, even though her hair seemed more aubergine to him. He wasn't sure just how happy she should be about that…

Makoto decided to part ways with Touko for the night. Ah! With all this worrying, he forgot that he needed to finish the homework that was due the next day. He walked past Togami and Oogami-san (Togami and Oogami-san? What could they possibly have to talk about?) along with a group of Reserve Course girls that were counting how many members of their group had brown hair. Makoto tried to remember who he could ask to help him finish when he walked past Mukuro Ikusaba (oddly enough, not accompanied by her younger sister).

"Hi, Ikusaba-san," he called to her, not even remembering that she was also in his class. He power-walked away before she could try to initiate a conversation…

At his previous location, Sakura had confronted Togami about the incident from earlier.

"Did you mean to have Asahina-yan bump into you?" Sakura asked him calmly. Certainly, she hadn't caught on to… Caught on to what? Togami wondered. He didn't mean to have her bump into him. Well, not necessarily. Why couldn't he just say that?

"Of course not," Togami replied flatly. "Why would I allow her to just bump into me? She could have ruined my uniform."

"I apologize for suddenly bringing this up again," Sakura said. "Lately, some guys have been bothering her, and I wanted to make sure you weren't trying to behave like them."

"Hm?" Togami asked. Asahina was being harassed? Normally, he'd say to just stop them, then he wouldn't concern himself with it any further. For some reason, though, he found himself becoming somewhat irritated with those guys. He'd have to find a way to take care of the issue if he… what? Why would he want to "take care of" it? He shouldn't care what happens to her, or any of them. But….

"In any case," Sakura said, "Please try not to add to the problem."

"I'm not trying to add to any problem," Togami stated before turning away from Sakura.

"Oh, and good luck helping that simpleton with her retake," he said. Sakura wondered what he could mean.

"I have to pay a visit to someone in my hometown this week, so I won't be here to help," answered Sakura. "Actually, I meant to tell Asahina-yan that earlier…"

She whispered the last sentence, but Togami still managed to hear her. Oogami was going away for the rest of the week? If Asahina didn't know that, then she must have lied about having her help… The heir could go and confront her about the lie, but he wondered more about why she told it in the first place…

"Oh," whispered Togami, not knowing what else to say. He soon exited the cafeteria, trying not to pay any mind to the group of brunette girls observing him. What exactly should he do about that…?


	3. Chapter 3

**Posting the next few chapters because I already wrote them, and the story I'm trying to finish is killing me (the latest update is turning into some freaking 10k monster or somethin'). Also, thanks for reading, and I apologize for the expectations that I accidentally set ._.**

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><p>With a graceful leap, Aoi landed in the Olympic-sized swimming pool of Hope's Peak Academy, floating around with thoughts on the earlier events on her mind. Normally, she could forget these things when she swam, but today they seemed to weigh her down a bit more. She could only hope that these thoughts wouldn't drown her.<p>

"Huuuh," she sighed. It was well past nighttime, and she knew she shouldn't be out this late, but this was the only time she could be by herself in the pool. Sure, it was always fun swimming with the other members of the Hope's Peak swimming club, but she couldn't always tell them everything. The water, though, seemed like it always knew, and it allowed her to forget without judging her. Unfortunately, the water didn't seem to be listening today.

_Riiing. Riiing._ Her alarm was going off already? Normally she set an alarm on her phone to make sure she didn't stay in the pool for too long, but this didn't seem long enough. Carefully, Aoi stepped out of the water and dried her arms with one of the clean towels near the locker room. She then looked near her bag for her phone, but… She couldn't find it? But she still heard it ringing…

"Oh, I left it on the bleachers," she whispered to herself. Man, she was feeling out of it for some reason. What's wrong with me today? The girl thought this as she walked to find her phone.

Wait. Aoi read online once that feeling strange without being sick was a symptom of falling in love… But…

"Hehe, that's dumb," she murmured. That didn't make sense. She didn't even know who she would be falling in love with. Naegi-kun? He was a pretty nice guy, buuut… She never had any sort of feelings for him besides thinking he was nice. Kuwata-kun? Uh… She never really interacted with him, so she figured it probably wasn't him. Hagakure-kun?... Nope. Definitely not him. Aoi went through a list in her head of all the guys she knew and could possibly like. But… What if it wasn't a guy at all? What if she wound up falling for Sakura-chan?!

"… Hehe," she laughed to herself. She did love and care about Sakura-chan very much, but she couldn't exactly say that she was _in love_ with her. But… Was there anyone she overlooked?

"Oh, yeah, there's _that guy_," she said. She didn't even really consider Togami when she went through the list of guys. But she was certain it wasn't _him._ She disliked everything about him, from his rude attitude to his pretentious demeanor. She hated when she looked at his stupid face, and his stupid glasses, and those stupid, pretty eyes that she always thought would be the prettiest color to use for water…

"… I must be tired," she said as she went to look at her phone. She was too late to catch it as it was ringing, but she saw that she had a text message from Sakura.

"Asahina-san, I will be making a visit to Kenichiro-kun in the hospital this week. His condition seems to be getting worse, and I want to be there to see if there's any way I could help. I apologize for not telling you earlier, but this and other recent events have been weighing on my mind, so I wound up not letting you know. I'll see you next week.

PS: Please study for your retake DX."

Jeez, Sakura-chan. You don't need to type out full words when you send a text message, Aoi thought as she read through all the texts. Normally, Sakura would call someone if she needed to speak with him or her, since she would always end up going over her monthly messaging allowance when she sent nothing but texts.

Wait. Sakura wasn't going to be here for the rest of the week? Aoi hoped everything would be okay with Kenichiro, but that means Togami would figure out that she had lied to him…

Wait, why did she care about him? They weren't friends, so she didn't need to worry about if one little white lie she told offended him. He probably didn't care, either.

"Waaaaah!" Aoi wailed. Sakura-chan's message is way way waaaay more important that that guy's feelings, so why did she worry just as much about that? Finally, Aoi sighed.

"I'm just going to go to bed," she thought to herself. She must have been too tired to finish her nighttime swimming session. Quickly and quietly, she entered the girls' locker room and changed into her normal clothing. She'd shower when she got to her room.

"I hope I don't end up bumping into that guy again," she said as she left the locker room. Come to think of it… She wound up bumping into two people on accident today, didn't she? Togami and… She didn't know who the other boy was. Come to think of it… he did kinda come to her defense that time, didn't he? Almost like her own personal superhero, or a guardian angel… What if… Could it be that she was falling for this mystery guy? She did admit that she was curious about him, and he did have pretty hair…. But… Aoi shrugged her shoulders. It could be love at first sight…

"Hehe," she giggled as she entered her dorm room. She'd leave that to be determined the next day.

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><p>"I… I d-d-don't appreciate the fact that you're using me to f-f-finish your homework," Touko mumbled to Makoto. The two of them were in the library finishing up work and working on how they're going to convince Kirigiri-san and Togami-kun to stay away from each other as far as romance is concerned. It should be easier, considering the fact that they knew they didn't like each other that way, but people change, and Touko wanted to make sure there was no room for error. Him not having an interest in Kirigiri-san didn't mean that he didn't have an interest in someone that wasn't her, she thought. Quite frankly, she was worried about that gambler girl trying to seduce him. But she could take care of her later.<p>

"You had me in here trying to help you brainstorm," Makoto replied. "Besides, I needed to get this done, and you decided to hold this meeting, so I decided to bring this with me."

"Pfft," Touko pffted. "Then you should be grateful that I'm helping you stay awake to do this."

Makoto sighed. If anything, _she_ was distracting him with her random ideas and her criticism. "Anyway," he said, "Why did you recruit _me_ for this?"

"Isn't it ob-b-bvious?" Touko shook a bit as she spoke. "I know you hav-ve a crush on Kirigiri, and I want you two t-t-to be happy together and far away from Byakuya-sama."

Makoto knew she wasn't concerned with him, but he liked to think she was supporting them as well.

"Wait! Don't be so loud," Makoto whisper-yelled. "Someone might hear you."

"There's n-no one here," Touko replied. It was nighttime, and no one went out at night. It was even less likely that someone would come here, even if he were walking around. "You don't need to be so anxious all the time."

Touko was the last person Makoto wanted to hear that from. Well, except maybe that Health Committee member in the grade above his.

"Fine," said Makoto as he resumed his homework. Touko was writing what looked like the manuscript for a new romance story (and occasionally glancing at her braids and smiling). The boy soon found himself growing bored of the work, and growing curious about what Touko was writing.

"Hey, Fukawa-san," Makoto began, "Is that a new story?"

"Of course not!" She slapped her hands down on the papers. "Th-these are rough drafts of my plans for tearing those two apart."

"Huh?" Makoto was confused. "Let me see one."

Hesitantly, Touko handed him one on the bottom of the stack. As quickly as possible, Makoto read through the 'planuscript,' then mentally booed himself for thinking of such a stupid word combination.

"This reads like one of your novels, Fukawa-san," he murmured.

"_You've_ read one of my novels?" Touko was surprised. He wasn't exactly her target audience.

"Well… My younger sister had a copy of it, so I looked through it once," he lied. Some of the girls in his middle school class had been reading it, and he rented a copy out of curiosity. He wound up enjoying and purchasing it, though it looks out of place in his manga collection. Still, he wondered how such a popular romance author could have such a hard time earning the attention of her own love interest…

"Oh… Okay," she said as she went back to writing.

"Hm…" Makoto thought. Why was she doing this? In fact, why was he doing this? He could have very easily… Okay, maybe not easily, but he could have told Touko that he didn't really want to get involved. The real question, though, would be "Is that true?" Does he actually not want to get involved? But he felt that devising plans might not be the best way to inform Kirigiri of his feelings… Still, he wanted to help Touko figure out how to catch Togami's attention. Maybe having those two become a couple would help her become less… Eeegh.

"Um… Fukawa-san…" Makoto wasn't sure he wanted to ask her this…

"Hm?" She looked at him expectantly. The library scenery really suits her, Makoto thought to himself with a smirk. He tried to stop it before he asked his question.

"Why are you so interested in Togami-kun?"

Touko looked affronted. "W-w-w-what k-k-kind of ridiculous question is that?!" What wasn't there to love about Byakuya-sama (if you weren't Touko Fukawa)?

"He's my reason for existence," said Touko. "To be honest, I never knew such a beautiful person could exist. He's a genius, he's almost inhumanly beautiful, and he's undeniably powerful. He's… He's like a god to me!"

Wow. Makoto was definitely not expecting that. But… He wasn't sure that he could agree with her on any of that.

"He seems kinda like a regular guy to me," Makoto said to himself. You know, if you overlooked the superficial stuff about him. Unfortunately for him, Touko was able to hear him.

"JUST A REGULAR GUY?!" She yelled incredulously before glaring directly into his eyes.

"Don't. You. _Dare_. Call my Byakuya-sama a 'regular guy'! He's _nothing_ like the likes of you," Touko said angrily. Terrified, Makoto nodded in agreement.

"Um, Fukawa-san," he squeaked. "Is it okay if I leave for tonight?"

"Go," she said firmly. Without wasting any time, Makoto collected his homework and bade goodnight to the angry girl. However, Touko stayed at the table.

"Just a regular guy… How dare he?!" She yelled. You could quantify the worth of all of the "regular guys" that have ever existed, and they wouldn't even equal a quarter of what Byakuya-sama was worth to her. Not even an _eighth_. Heck, if Byakuya Togami was the most beautifully composed piece of music, those "regular guys" would only be a hemidemisemiquaver note! _If_ that!

Touko sighed. "I need to go to bed," she said. Just a regular guy… There's no way.

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><p>Kyouko Kirigiri suddenly opened the door to her father's office.<p>

"Headmaster Kirigiri, I do not appreciate…" Kyouko was completely prepared to begin her rant to her father for asking her to come to his office so late at night, but he wasn't there. The chair at his desk was empty, and one chair in front of his desk turned to reveal a certain heir.

"Ugh, I should have expected this," Togami said as he stood up. "Did you also receive a message from the headmaster?"

"Clearly," said Kyouko. She wasn't going to just visit him of her own volition. She was hoping that she could get more information in the case of a few problem students, but she hadn't heard anything about it lately.

"In any case, it would probably be best to leave now—" he stopped after a failed attempt at turning the doorknob. Right outside, maniacal giggling could be heard.

"What the hell?" Togami asked. Kyouko looked at him as he attempted again to open the door.

"It doesn't seem like the headmaster was the one to lock the doors," Kyouko said calmly. "It sounds like a mischievous girl giggling. She's probably trying to play a prank on us." This night was just becoming one disappointment after another for her.

"Damn it," the male captive muttered as he stepped away from the door.

"You seem distraught," said Kyouko. "Were you planning on studying with Asahina-san tonight? Seems a bit late for that."

"No— What?" Togami asked her in shock. How did she know that he was supposed to help Asahina?

"Yasuhiro-san told me that she overheard you volunteering to tutor Asahina-san," Kyouko answered his unspoken question.

"I did not…" Togami said lamely. "Kumada asked me to—"

"Don't worry, I'm not interested in using that information to embarrass you," Kyouko confirmed. "But Asahina-san… That's unexpected."

"Tch. Exactly what are you trying to imply?"

"Nothing, nothing." Kyouko gave him a smug smirk.

"In any case," Togami began, "One of those 'problem students' you're so interested in could be the one keeping us in here."

"Don't speak so casually about that," warned Kyouko. If she was, in fact, the one outside, she could be listening to their conversation. This student isn't supposed to know that she's being investigated. Togami could be ruining their investigation. Fortunately and unfortunately, Togami caught on to what she meant.

"So, how are you going to deal with Naegi's interest in you?" Togami asked loudly enough for someone outside to hear. Kyouko glared at him.

"Of all the things you could have said…" Kyouko continued glaring at him. She had a hunch that Naegi-kun might be interested in her, but she dismissed it. There's always the chance that Kyouko was being a bit arrogant.

"Naegi-kun most likely doesn't have any interest in me," she lied. "If anything, he and Fukawa-san seem like they're becoming closer." This was not a lie.

"Ha," he laughed. To be honest, he was relieved that Fukawa seemed to have calmed down about him.

"In any case, now you'll be the one to have to deal with the 'problem student'," Togami whispered. Kyouko had told him about the case of these "problem students," for which her father had recently asked of her help. Unfortunately, Togami was not interested enough to want to contribute, so she wound up wasting her time with him on that issue.

"You seem to be forgetting what we had discussed earlier. If anything, she now has more interesting information on you," Kyouko said. A clicking sound could be heard from the doors.

Togami did forget. Oh, well. If this particular problem student did decide to start rumors, he could just deny it. The commoners in his class would more than likely believe him. He could confirm with Asahina later that he didn't mean—

There it is again! He needed to stop considering her whenever he thought about his interactions with others.

"Are you done with your reverie, or should I leave the door open for you?" Kyouko stood at the now-open door. Reluctantly, Togami followed after her.

"What were you thinking about?" Kyouko got closer to him so she could whisper this question.

"That's none of your business," he snapped. Quietly, the two walked back to their rooms for the night, not suspecting that someone might be watching them. All Kyouko was concerned about was making sure to give the headmaster a piece of her mind when she saw him the next day.

Meanwhile, a certain Junko Enoshima was glad that the camera on her phone had a 'silent snap' setting. Showing these two together would cause enough broken hearts for her to manipulate… The next day was going to be fun.

"Although… Looks like big sis might have some competition. Puhuhu~"


	4. Chapter 4

It was a typical Tuesday at Hope's Peak Academy—or, the students would like to believe that. The setting, the characters, everything was fitting for a typical day at school. Except, that is, for the new picture on the bulletin boards. A large crowd of Reserve Course students circled around the image of a certain lilac-haired beauty leaning close to the most popular boy in the school. Conveniently enough, the angling of the picture hid exactly what Kyouko was doing so close to his side like that.

"No! I can't believe it!" One of the girls from the Reserve Course classes stared in disbelief at the picture.

"There's gotta be some way for this picture to be fake, right?" A boy asked this question above the murmurs of the other kids.

"No way! I was totally gonna ask that chick out later!"

"Kirigiri-san? Don't you think she's a bit out of your league, dude?"

"NOOO! TOGAMI-SAMAAAA!"

The students continued their idiotic, lovelorn wailing. One girl, who didn't seem to be fazed by any of this news, decided to fulfill her role as the segue creator.

"Hey, does anyone even know why we were called here so early? School doesn't start for another hour."

_Click. Click. Click._ Heels loud enough to be considered a dress code violation could be heard moving towards the crowd of students.

"Upupupu. You guys are probably wondering about those pictures~"

As if on cue, the group of kids turned to see the owner of the voice, fully prepared to cling on to every word so long as it gave them an answer.

* * *

><p>Asahina woke to the sound of her alarm, like she usually did. As usual, she sent a message to Sakura telling her when she'd be in the cafeteria, forgetting that she had left for the week.<p>

"Oh, wait…" Asahina realized her mistake right after she hit "send." Oh, well. Sakura should expect something like that by now.

It felt strange walking to the cafeteria knowing that she wouldn't be meeting Sakura there today. Even so, she wouldn't make her trip alone.

"ASAHINA-DONO!" There's only one person who'd use such an antiquated honorific. Asahina turned to see Hifumi Yamada, surprisingly pretty far ahead of Celestia Ludenberg. It seemed that she refused to run to catch up to him.

"Yamada-kun? What's wrong?" Asahina had feared for the worst. Celestia didn't exactly treat Yamada kindly most of the time…

"Togami-dono! And Kirigiri-dono! They were seen doing something _inappropriate_ in the headmaster's office!"

Asahina stared at him in disbelief. She didn't know whether she should believe that, or why she was so… bothered by it. Seconds later, Celestia had arrived and smacked him in the head with the book she was carrying.

"Stop spreading misinformation, fool," she reprimanded the boy. "There was nothing going on between those two in there. Well, that is, according to Miss Kirigiri."

Nothing going on? Asahina sighed in relief. Wait. Why would she do that? It's not like she'd be upset if Togami and Kirigiri-chan got together. Well, she'd be upset for Kirigiri-chan, but it wouldn't have much to do with her.

"Anyway, darling," Celestia continued, "Since you'll probably end up hearing soon enough, Mister Togami and Miss Kirigiri were trapped in the office by a 'problem student.' Miss Kirigiri didn't tell me who exactly it was."

"Perhaps the culprit is a member of the Reserve Course? I'll inquire for some information from my agents later," Yamada said. It would seem that Yamada had the most success in becoming friends with the Reserve course students. Unfortunately for the other talented students, they weren't able to mix in well with them.

"Oh. Well, it's time to find the others and let them know. Come, Yamada," said Celestia. For some reason, the two reminded Asahina of a sad dog being dragged along by his master after barking at a random pedestrian.

So, something happened between Kirigiri-chan and Togami? Asahina already knew they didn't do anything like _that_, but she couldn't help but wonder exactly why the incident occurred in the first place.

Wait. Why is she worrying about this again? The girl forced the ideas out of her head. After all, she's got her own mystery boy to worry about.

Another interruption presented itself before the girl right as she approached the cafeteria doors.

"You! Swimmer girl!"

Huh? That sounded too nice to be Fukawa-chan, the girl thought. Suddenly, she was approached by three senior Reserve Course students.

"What's the meaning of _this?!_" The girl in the middle shoved a picture near Asahina's face.

"You're probably irrelevant in the grand scheme of things, but we figured someone in their class might have at least a bit of an idea about what was going on," another girl added unnecessarily. Rude.

"D-d-do-does T-to-tog… WAAAAAH!" The girl furthest in the back cried. The rude girl from earlier petted her back and tried to reassure her.

"Please leave me out of this," Asahina replied. "What that stupid lemon boy does has nothing to do with me. Besides, it's not even…"

Asahina took a closer look at the image. To her, it looked almost like… was Kirigiri-chan kissing Togami?

"HEY! Don't call my future boyfriend a stupid lemon boy!" The girl holding the photo lowered it as she yelled at Asahina.

"Uh, _your_ future boyfriend?"

"But To-Togami-sa-sama… WAAAAH!"

"Enough."

Asahina kinda maybe knew that voice! The four girls turned to see an almost unfamiliar face.

"Don't you have something better to do besides harass obvious side characters?"

Side character?! Asahina would not stand for this! Not even coming from mystery boy.

"Yeah… you really are just a side character, aren't you?" The girl holding the picture looked back at Asahina.

"What's more, you're the fanservice-y side character that only perverted male fans would like!" The exceptionally rude girl added on. The crying girl sat and whimpered.

Side character? _Fanservice?!_ Just who do these people think I am?! If anything, I'm the main character of my own story. Besides, I've got enough endearing traits for any fan to like me, she thought.

"As if either of you have room to speak," the black-haired boy continued. "Even to the people you consider main characters of your story, you're completely irrelevant. It's pretty sad, to be honest."

"What?! Just whose side are you on?!" The leader asked.

"There's no reason for me to side with either of you," the boy said as he turned to leave.

"Pfft. Forget this asshole," said the leader girl as she and her friends also turned to leave in a different direction. Asahina followed after the boy.

"Wait!" She called. "What was that all about? That was so rude!"

"Hmph. I'm not sure that would warrant an apology," the boy responded. He didn't turn to look at her.

"It totally did! Besides, it's not nice to call someone a side character," Asahina replied. "In fact, if you think about it, we're each the main characters in our own stories. There's no one whose sole purpose is 'side character'."

Finally, the boy stopped. "You make an interesting point," he acknowledged. For some reason, this made Asahina want to smile.

"Still," he continued, "some people have stories that are too boring to even matter. For my sake, try not to be one of those people."

Asahina stopped and watched the mystery boy walk further away.

"WAIT!" Asahina yelled. "Who are you?"

"That is not for you to know," he replied curtly. "And please don't try to follow me."

Asahina, for the last time, stopped and stared at the boy as he walked away from her. He was kinda mean, she thought. Well, at least he isn't as awful as Togami. Still, she was glad that she was able to impress him at least a little bit with what she said.

"It looks like my story might be turning into a romance," she whispered to herself, still wondering about the picture and this boy, among other things.

* * *

><p>Makoto skipped breakfast that day. It's not like he meant to, but the piece of paper shoved underneath his door was enough to shock him for a good thirty minutes. He didn't even confirm with Fukawa what they would be doing about their love interests today. The boy surveyed the classroom.<p>

"Fukawa-san isn't here yet," Makoto whispered to himself. Come to think of it, what if he wasn't the only one to have the image slipped under his door? Makoto suddenly became worried. What if she passed out from the shock, and she still isn't awake? Or worse, what if she passed out, but did awaken as—

"Um, Naegi-kun?" Makoto encountered the ever-stoic poker face of Mukuro Ikusaba. Actually, her poker face wasn't holding up too well today.

"Ah! Good morning, Ikusaba-san," Makoto said with a smile. Mukuro tried to remember what she was saying.

"Um… Well… I'll be going away for a while, and I was wondering… Can I borrow your notes when I get back?" Like a bandage, Mukuro.

"Oh? Sure thing. Have you got another job?" Makoto asked. Not exactly, she thought.

"… Kinda," she said. Surprisingly, Makoto stood up and placed a straightened hand to his forehead in an attempt at making a salute.

"Be sure to come back safe, Ikusaba-san!" Makoto said as he saluted her. Mukuro cracked a small smile.

"You're such a dork," she laughed as she thanked him. At least I was able to make one girl smile, Makoto thought. If only something like that would work with Kirigiri-san…

"Alright, class," began the kids' teacher, Kumada. "We're going to start with going over you last homework assignment after we call roll, so be prepared."

This caused Makoto to realize two things. One, he still never got a chance to finish his homework, and he was totally screwed. Two, Fukawa-san still hasn't arrived… Makoto worried about if she was okay.

"… Fukawa-san… Touko Fukawa-san?" Kumada repeated. It was odd for her to not be here. He understood that sometimes his students had to leave for events or competitions or visits, but he always had them give three days' notice.

"Here," a weak, yet audible voice called. Dejectedly, Fukawa walked into the classroom with a slouch.

There's no denying it, Makoto thought. Fukawa-san also saw that image. A dark, depressed aura seemed to follow her to her seat.

"... Here," the girl mumbled.

"... You already said that. Fujisaki-kun?"

"Here," said the small programmer after a few seconds. It was taking some time for him to get used to the honorific. After calling everyone and reprimanding Naegi and Asahina for not doing their homework, the kids were given a group assignment.

"Alright. Sign up your group mates as soon as you all decide. The assignment's due at the end of the period," Kumada informed the kids. "Oh, and try not to get into groups of more than four people."

Quickly, everyone scrambled to make sure they would be able to work with their friends. But groups? Asahina wasn't sure just who she should work with. She normally followed Sakura-chan into whatever group she was invited to join, but she's with Kenichiro now...

Kirigiri, seeing that Asahina looked somewhat like a lost dog, pushed Togami near her when she saw the opportunity.

"Oops," she whispered as she walked past him.

Damn her, Togami thought as he turned to see who he was pushed into.

"...Togami-kun?" He should have been able to guess at least that much.

"Hmph," he said without apologizing. "I see that Oogami isn't here."

Crap! He's probably mad at her for lying to him! Asahina had almost completely forgotten about that.

"I... I already found a tutor, so stop bothering me about that," she mumbled weakly. That had actually slipped out of the young heir's mind at the moment.

"Yes, and that's all fine and good, but that's not going to help you find a group to work with. I already asked Naegi-"

"Bya-Byakuya-sa-m-m-maaa..." Togami didn't need to turn around to see who had interrupted him.

"What is it, Fukawa?" Togami asked irritatedly.

"I... I SIGNED US UP TO WORK TOGETHER! I ABSOLUTELY REFUSE TO LOSE TO THAT ARROGANT PRINCESS WANNABE!"

Celestia, hearing their conversation, wondered exactly what she did to offend Fukawa recently.

"Fukawa-kun! Togami-kun! STOP CREATING SUCH A RUCKUS!" Kiyotaka Ishimaru yelled, actually managing to be louder than the both of them.

"Ishimaru-kun! Let me do my god damned job at least for one day!" Kumada yelled. "And furthermore, I'd like to advise against having only two people in your group. Togami-kun, Fukawa-san, find someone else to work with."

Togami sighed and rubbed his forehead. Well, he already knew that Naegi wouldn't work with anyone else, and he wasn't brave enough to ask Kirigiri to work with him. Togami was relieved to think that he'd have at least two people he could tolerate.

"Well then, it looks like you can work with..." Togami stopped when he realized that Naegi was standing in Asahina's place.

"Togami-kun! Ikusaba-san asked if she could work with us. Is it okay if I tell her yes?" God damnit, Naegi! Again, Togami sighed.

"Fine," he said. "Let's just get this over with."

Asahina, realizing what he was trying to do, had run to find Chihiro and ask if it was okay to work with his group. Ishimaru-kun and Oowada-kun definitely wouldn't say no to him. But... Why was Togami-kun suddenly trying to be all buddy-buddy with her lately?!

"Ah! Sure thing, Asahina-san! Is Oogami-san okay?" Chihiro asked her. He had also noticed that she was absent from school that day.

"I hope so," Asahina responded. "Her boyfriend isn't feeling well, so she went to visit him."

"Ah. I see," said Chihiro. "I'm very sorry to hear about that."

Eeeh. Asahina kinda wished Chihiro wouldn't be so formal with her. She still kinda wanted to be friends, even though Chihiro wasn't exactly what she thought he was.

"Enough chit-chat!" Ishimaru yelled. "We must finish this packet as soon as possible! Then we can move on to tomorrow's work!"

"Jeez, bro," Mondo Oowada said. "We've got two smart people in our group, so we'll be able to get this done in time."

"I WILL NOT TOLERATE YOU DOING NOTHING! AT LEAST PUT IN EFFORT TO FINISH A QUARTER OF THE WORK!"

"Whatever, man! I'm gonna do something, SO DON'T ACT LIKE I'M GONNA MOOCH OFF THE REST OF YA!"

"... Does this happen often?" Asahina whispered to Chihiro.

"Not really," responded Chihiro. "Ishimaru-kun's just mad that Oowada-kun didn't do too well on his test..."

Jeez, Asahina thought. Just how many people failed that test? There's no way her failing was completely her fault, if so many others did. She was pretty sure Sakura-chan would just tell her to stop making excuses, though...

Meanwhile, the other groups began complaining about the fact that Oowada and Ishimaru were being so loud, thus causing the others to have to be louder.

"I say," began Celestia, who was working with Kirigiri and Yamada. "What should one do when the class representative is displaying such deplorable behavior?"

"Ignore it," said Kirigiri. They'd cool down eventually.

"It would seem that Fujisaki-dono and Asahina-dono also don't want to get involved," remarked Yamada.

"A wise enough choice on their part," said Celestia as she began to read. She had received another gift from a certain someone that morning.

"Yasuhiro-dono? Is that the anthology of dark enchantments for which you had been pining?"

"It's an anthology of old Latin poetry, and I wasn't pining for it," said Celestia in irritation. "Furthermore, I asked you not to call me that... Mister Yamada." She had to refrain from calling him something rude. Kirigiri was able to pick up on that immediately, despite how tired she was. In addition to being stuck in that room, Kirigiri also had to finish some jobs for a couple of people. There was never a shortage of things for her to do.

"Careful not to lose it, Yasuhiro-san," said Kirigiri. "It looks expensive."

"I'm sure it was," Celestia responded, trying not to snap at her for calling her "Yasuhiro-san." Celestia couldn't help but wonder, though... Who exactly would be giving her these things? And why? She did have a guess, but it would have been embarrassing if she were wrong.

Quickly, Celestia glanced at Kirigiri, who was trying her hardest to stay awake.

Maybe she'd be willing to help, Celestia thought to herself with a grin. Until then, though, she should finish her work.


	5. Chapter 5

"So, I hear there's a situation with Kirigiri and Togami goin' on?" Leon Kuwata asked his group mates in an attempt to postpone actually doing some work.

"Shhh! They're right in here! Don't you have any tact?" Sayaka Maizono (who may or may not be going out with Leon due to certain complications) asked him, to which he responded with a mischievous giggle.

"Lighten up, Saya," he said. "Thanks to Felix and Oscar over there, none of the other groups can really hear us."

"Hmph! Relationships are still a pretty sensitive topic," said Natsuki* Kuzuryuu, a Super High School Level Little Sister** who happened to have an older brother in a senior class. "I'm pretty sure you didn't appreciate the gossiping about you and Sayaka-chan."

"That's because that gossiping was being endorsed by tabloids!" Leon and Sayaka almost seemed to have planned that response. Naturally, as a national pop sensation, Sayaka would have lots of popularity, even (especially?) within a male demographic. Unfortunately, though, idols tend to lose popularity when they no longer are "available." Seeing as this popularity is how she caught the attention of the Hope's Peak Scouts in the first place, it'd seem counterproductive for her to openly go out with a popular baseball player like Leon (who would receive nothing but endless teasing from his own teammates).

"Heheh," laughed Yasuhiro Hagakure, who tended to support their relationship (for fear of what his answer would be, the other kids decided not to ask why). "Natsukichi, didn't you start a bunch of the…"

Natsuki moved to face Hagakure closer. Her expression was nothing short of terrifying. "Quiet, worm!" she commanded. "Remember, I'm biding my time until graduation. I haven't forgotten about all the money you swindled, and if you value your worthless life, I advise you do the same."

Too scared to remind her that the conversation had nothing to do with that incident, Hagakure gulped and nodded in agreement. He was also too scared to ask what exactly would happen to him after graduation.

"Eh? What're you two talkin' about over there?" Leon asked.

"Ah! I just asked him not to call me 'Natsukichi,' anymore," Natsuki replied with a smile. _That's clearly a lie!_ Leon and Sayaka were tempted to say this, but they knew it wouldn't lead to anything good.

"Anyways, stop trying to get off topic," Sayaka said sternly. "This assignment is due at the end of the period, and we're not done yet!"

"Pfft. Relax, Saya," Leon said. "We're, like, already three-fourths done."

"This packet is twelve pages long, and we've completed six of them," she replied.

"Okay, fine, we're two-thirds done. There's still plenty of time to finish," he said cheekily. "Speaking of the assignment, though, why do you think Kirigiri and Togami aren't working together on it?"

"I dunno," Sayaka confessed. "But I'm starting to think I should have followed their example."

Meanwhile, at another cluster of desks, Mukuro clicked her mechanical pencil in thought. She and Fukawa were almost finished with their half of the assignment (despite the many breaks Fukawa took to stare at Togami and glare at Kirigiri, both of whom ignored her), almost perfectly matching the pace of the guys. Still, there was something she wanted to discuss with Fukawa.

"Hey, Fukawa-san," Mukuro began. "Can we talk outside for a moment?"

"W-what?!" Fukawa said incredulously. "Just us t-two!? Why?! Are you gonna b-bul-bully me?!"

"What? No!" Mukuro snapped. "I need to ask you something. Come with me." With that, Mukuro pulled Fukawa by the wrist and brought her outside, making sure to let Naegi know that they'd be right back, and that they didn't need to be followed.

"So…" Mukuro started once they were outside the classroom. "Um… About you and… Naegi-kun…"

"HUH!?" Fukawa grew worried. Did this soldier manage to figure out what she and Naegi were planning?! Would she tell Kirigiri and her White Knight?! NO! Fukawa could already imagine what kind of ridicule she'd face not only from them, but from her other classmates. It'd be just like her elementary school days…

"W-what ab-b-bout that… That loser?" Fukawa asked. She noticed a vein bulge on Mukuro's face, but she dismissed it since it seemed to be gone as soon as it arrived.

"Naegi-kun is not a loser," Mukuro replied. "But if you called him that… Does it mean you two aren't… together?"

"Together? Of course not!" Fukawa blurted out. "I am very clearly devoted to my White Knight, Byakuya-sama!"

Aw shit, Mukuro thought. She didn't mean to get Fukawa started on her feelings for Togami, but she just kept rambling on.

"Besides, that Naegi has a crush on—CRAP! I almost said too much!" Fukawa ran back into the classroom. Naegi has a crush on somebody? Fukawa didn't get to finish her sentence, but it must mean something if she couldn't let Mukuro know, right? Mukuro decided to stay hopeful, knowing that a certain someone would be laughing at her for it…

"IKUSABA-KUN! Why are you standing out here?!"

Huh? Ishimaru's unnecessarily loud voice snapped her back into reality.

"Uh… Right. I'll be on my way to finish, class rep!" Mukuro responded before leaving. While she wasn't sure if he was a very pleasant person, Mukuro had a lot of respect for Ishimaru. He reminded her of the drill sergeants she's had to deal with in the past.

"Tch," Oowada spat. "You know, it's your fault that Kumada asshole put us out in the first place."

"My fault? No, what was really my fault was thinking you had anything resembling a redeeming quality!" Ishimaru whisper-yelled so as not to disturb any other classes.

"Just knock it off, you two!" Asahina commanded. "Fujisaki-chan—kun and I have been working on this while you two were arguing, so can you stop for a few moments and help us get this done?!"

The two arguing guys stopped for a moment and blankly stared at the smaller girl. Chihiro decided to break the silence.

"Asahina-san, you didn't need to—"

Suddenly, Ishimaru bowed.

"I'm sorry! We did not mean to make you and Fujisaki-kun shoulder this burden! The two of us will get to work right away!" Ishimaru informed the two.

"Yeah," Oowada added. "We coulda started sooner if…"

Oowada would have continued, but he caught sight of Chihiro giving him a sad look. It almost broke his heart, but he needed to remember that Chihiro just wanted them to stop their raucous banter so much.

"Uh… Yeah, let's… Just do that," Oowada mumbled feebly. And so, the four continued to work. After a few moments, though, Asahina sighed. Chihiro wondered exactly what that sigh could mean.

"Sorry about earlier, Asahina-san," Chihiro whispered an apology. "These two are good friends, so there's no need for you to worry."

"Oh? It isn't about that," Asahina said, though she acknowledged that it was nice of him to have such high hopes for Ishimaru and Oowada's friendship.

"Hm? Then, what is troubling you?" Chihiro asked. Asahina kinda did want to confide in someone, but she wasn't sure if Chihiro would be the right person… In the end, she just decided to give him a condensed version of the situation.

"Well… Lately, Togami-kun's kinda been bothering me," she whispered. Chihiro nodded.

"WHAT?" Oowada yelled. Wait, why was he yelling?

"Bro! You weren't supposed to be listening to their conversation!" Ishimaru stated frantically.

"Crap! You guys heard that?!" Asahina whisper-yelled.

"Sorry! I should have realized how quiet this hallway was," Chihiro said.

"That's besides the point," Oowada stated. "Has that rich bastard been harassing you? I'll be sure to pound his face into the ground!"

"What? WAIT, NO!" Asahina exclaimed. As if on cue, Togami walked out of the classroom.

"Togami-kun! What are you doing wandering outside?" Ishimaru interrogated.

"Hu," Togami exhaled. "My group is done, so Kumada said we could do whatever until the end of the period."

"Good. That gives us plenty of time," Oowada said as he moved toward Togami.

"Hey, asshole! Why the hell have you been bothering this chick?!" Oowada asked Togami, who tried not to look at him as he left the classroom.

"Hmph," he replied. "It seems that she's most bothered merely by my presence. Sorry, but I can't help that." Calmly and coolly, Togami walked away from the angry gang leader. Oowada mostly ignored the protests from Chihiro and Ishimaru.

"Hrrr! Don't walk away when I'm tryna ask you something, you sonuva—"

"I already answered your question," the heir interrupted without turning to acknowledge him. Asahina became worried. Why was Togami being such an idiot? He knew that Oowada-kun would probably pick a fight with him if he became angry enough. She walked closer to them in preparation to stop Togami from provoking him.

Unfortunately, Oowada became more irate quicker than she expected. With an angry growl, Oowada prepared to punch Togami until he promised to stop being an asshole.

"STOOOP!"

"NO! ASAHINA-SAN!"

_Smack!_ In a split-second decision, Asahina had jumped between the two in an attempt to stop a quarrel. In that same second, Oowada's balled fist collided with Asahina's forehead. In the same instance that he realized what had happened, Togami turned around. With only a foot of space left, though, he managed to catch the girl, to everyone's relief. Angrily, Togami turned to look at Oowada.

"Do you see what you've done now?" Togami scolded.

"I… didn't mean to…" Oowada trailed off before he could finish his thought.

"Bruh! I TOLD YOU NOT TO BE SO RECKLESSLY VIOLENT!" Ishimaru stated.

"I… I agree," Chihiro said. "But, Togami-kun, you were in the wrong for provoking him like that!"

"Hmph. Whatever," said Togami as he picked up the unconscious girl.

"Wait," Oowada grabbed his shoulder. "Let me take her to the infirmary. I'll need to apologize when she wakes up."

"And let some other incident occur? Like hell," Togami retorted in annoyance. He resumed bringing her to the school's clinic. Ishimaru and Chihiro proceeded to hold Oowada back, although he didn't make any effort to go after him. He kinda just slouched over.

"You can deliver an apology to her after she wakes up," Ishimaru said. "For now, though, you need to calm down and think about how you will atone for this! Also, we need to finish this assignment and explain what transpired to Kumada-sensei."

"I… Fine," Oowada murmured. He can't believe he punched out a chick (even if it was meant for someone who he felt may have been more deserving). In an attempt to reassure him, Chihiro placed a hand on his shoulder.

"It's okay, Oowada-kun," he whispered. "Asahina-san doesn't seem like the kind of person to hold a grudge over an accident."

"… I guess…" Oowada said. As the three resumed what they had been doing before, a conversation topic that neither one necessarily wanted to bring up presented itself: why, exactly, did Asahina jump in front of Oowada?

* * *

><p>Damn him, Togami thought as he carried Asahina to the clinic. Never had he wanted so much to retaliate in a quarrel, but doing so would mean that this girl would probably sustain lasting injuries. He just hoped that imbecile didn't give her a concussion, although Togami did notice a part of her forehead turning purple.<p>

Don't freak out now, Togami heir. If you do, then you'll only get angrier and Asahina will only hurt more. He tried to repeat these things to himself in order to keep from losing his cool. A Togami heir must always stay calm when a problem arises.

Finally, the two reached the infirmary. No one else is here, Togami noted. He would be sure to call someone down as soon as he made sure Asahina was safely out of his hands. After placing her on a nearby bed, he looked around the room for a cooling pack of some sort. He eventually had to settle for making one himself, though.

Once he brought it over to her and placed it on her head, Togami pulled out his cellphone. Now, who should he call? Would Pennyworth know anything about this? Never mind, he was too far away. He could always call Kyouko Kirigiri, but her father might be a better bet. The boy didn't want to have to deal with Kyouko's inevitable questions.

"Hello, Headmaster Kirigiri? I'm going to need you to send a trained professional to the infirmary right now," Togami commanded before hanging up. At that moment, he noticed a pamphlet on quick civilian responses to bodily injuries and began reading it.

"So, I should turn her on her side," he mumbled. Then that means he'd have to hold the ice pack to her forehead the entire time… He just hoped that his arm didn't tire out.

"Uhm… He… Hellooo…." A timid voice called out from the clinic's entrance. The boy was soon greeted by a girl with horribly cut purple hair. Besides her hair, he noticed that she, too, was wearing a Hope's Peak uniform.

"Don't tell me the headmaster sent _you_ to take care of her," Togami stated rudely. The girl flinched at his words.

"Uh, I-I-I'm SORRY!" The girl replied frantically. "All the other nurses are missing or gravely ill, though. Mister Headmaster said that I was the only one he could rely on to manage this place right now…"

The boy sighed. The girl glanced up at him.

"Forgive me," she began, "But you don't seem to have any injuries. I was asked to look after a 'Byakuya Togami-kun' but… You're not the same one I've met, even though you kinda favor him…"

"I am the only Byakuya Togami here," he replied. "Anyhow, that's beside the point. Help me make sure this girl is okay."

"Uh… Alright," the stand-in nurse responded. "Oh, I apologize for my horrible manners! My name is—"

"You can tell me your name after you help me make sure she's taken care of," Togami cut her off sternly. The poor girl wasn't able to do much besides mumble an apology and make sure the patient was fine. She asked question after question before diagnosing anything.

"What happened?"

"An idiotic brute punched her in her forehead. After that, she became unconscious."

"So scary! I didn't realize there was someone here who could hit with so much force."

"I told you to save your tangents for later."

"Sorry! Did she collide with the floor?"

"No, thankfully. She was caught just in time."

"That's a relief~ This might have been worse if she had completely fallen over. How long ago did this happen?"

"Less than ten minutes ago."

"Okay! If you put the ice pack on her head soon after that, then she might be okay. We just need to make sure she wakes up soon…"

A few minutes passed. Togami and the nurse stared at Asahina in hopes that she'd wake up soon, but she remained unconscious save for a few murmurings every so often.

"She's still not awake," Togami snapped at the girl angrily.

"You're right," she said. "Maybe you'll need to wake her with a kiss~"

Togami's voice shot right up. "What?!"

"Hehe," the student nurse giggled. "Just kidding~"

Silence. The two sat quietly for a little while longer. The girl's whines became louder.

"I'm sorry, but I really have to go meet someone right now!" The nurse scribbled something on a loose piece of paper.

"For the most part, she seems like she'll be okay. Just make sure she wakes up soon, and try to make sure she's responsive while she's awake." She handed the paper to Togami.

"Send a message to that number if there's any trouble," she responded before walking out.

"I forgot something!" she exclaimed as she walked back in the room.

"Ugh. What is it now?" Togami asked. To his surprise, she stuck out her hand.

"My name is Mikan Tsumiki. I'm guessing you're in Class 78 with one of my friends. I haven't been able to see her lately, so please make sure to tell her hi for me! Well, I'm off," she crammed all that in before walking off to Lord knows where. How irresponsible. Togami looked down at the paper displaying her name and phone number before throwing it away. He could call for a professional medical staff if that was the best that Jin Kirigiri could do.

"…No… Oowada… kun…"

Huh? Asahina was murmuring in her sleep. Togami sighed in relief. She might wake up soon. But… Togami couldn't help but wonder what she was dreaming about.

"Not… his fault… Don't…" Was she dreaming about what happened earlier?

"Togami-kun… safe… yay… heh…" What? Was she worried about his safety? Is _that_ why she jumped in front of that raving lunatic?! Although… He was kinda embarrassed to know that she did that for his sake…

Lightly, he flicked her nose. "Idiot," he said. "I don't need you doing stupid stuff to protect me."

Wait. Just then, she said his name, didn't she? Togami felt his face become hot. Actually… Has he ever said her name?

"A… Asa… Sa…" He couldn't do it.

"Yay… safe… soft…" Even though he realized that he didn't have a reason to, Togami blushed. Just what was this girl imagining?!

Almost as if she had been shocked awake, Asahina's eyes opened wide. Just as quickly as she was awake, she was trying to move around.

"What ha—urgh!" Asahina held her head in her hands. Calmly, Togami pushed her back into a resting position.

"Stop moving around so much," he commanded. She looked over at him.

"Togami-kun? Why are you here?" Asahina asked. Should he tell the truth?

"Hm…" he thought. "You tried to jump between me and Oowada like some sort of idiot. That guy carried you here, and Ishimaru forced me to come along." Why did he lie about exactly what happened? He himself wasn't even that sure.

"Oh…" Asahina replied. "Then why are you _still_ here?"

"They left to explain what happened to Kumada," Togami replied quickly. "It's not my fault Oowada injured you, so I figured I didn't have to go to explain."

"Huuuuh," Asahina hummed. She wasn't sure she believed everything he was saying. If he didn't feel that he had much to do with the incident, then why did he bother staying at her side?

"Kirigiri-chan's not going to appreciate the fact that you're alone with another girl, hehe," Asahina giggled.

"Kirigiri couldn't even come close to caring," Togami replied. Still, he has been hearing rumors about how they were locked in the headmaster's office. Kirigiri had already begun dispelling the rumors, though. He wasn't too concerned about it, to be honest. After all, he's already got the chance to explain to…

"Wait," he said. "You almost made me forget." He leaned in closer to her.

"Don't try to play 'brave knight' and protect me," he whispered. Asahina half-listened to him, but the other half of her attention was focused on his face. With how close he currently was, she was able to take in every detail. She almost became jealous of the fact that his skin seemed so smooth. Now that she thought about it… He was close enough to…

"Togami-kun," she began. "Do you realize how this might look if someone happens to pass by?"

Now that she mentioned it… Togami pulled away from her. "I was just trying to make sure you heard me," he said, turning so that she wouldn't see how red his face had become. "I needed to get my point across."

"Wait a second," Asahina realized something. "I wasn't trying to protect _you_, I was trying to make sure Oowada-kun didn't cause any trouble! He had been distracted enough from the assignment already, and all you did was cause more problems!"

"_Excuse_ me?" Togami responded. "You're honestly trying to blame me for the fact that your group member has the attention span of a goldfish and the temper control of a three-year-old?"

Asahina winced, but she didn't say anything back. Perhaps he had become too loud…

"…Togami-kun.." Asahina muttered. "…What happened again?"

Did she catch on to his lie? Or did she actually forget? Togami didn't acknowledge her question.

"… So… Sor…"

"Asahina-san! Are you okay?" Chihiro Fujisaki stood at the entrance to the clinic. Ishimaru and Oowada followed him.

"Huh? Yeah, I'm fine," she said to the three. Togami scoffed.

"Well, since you three are here, I'll be leaving," Togami stated before walking off. "If there's any problem, call the number in that balled-up piece of paper."

"Tch. Hate that guy," Oowada growled when he was gone. "Anyway… I'm sorry for accidentally knocking you unconscious."

"It's okay," she responded, even though that isn't exactly the word choice she wanted to use. "You brought me here, so it's kinda made up for." Asahina smiled reassuringly.

What the hell was she talking about, though? Oowada wondered if he misinterpreted her. Maybe she was thanking him for offering to bring her?

"Uh… No problem," he said.

"Asahina-kun! You may be happy to know that we finished the assignment, so you don't need to worry about that!" Ishimaru was as loud as ever. The loud noises didn't hurt as much anymore, though.

"That's good, I guess," she sighed. "I'm just gonna lay down for a while. You guys can go back to class."

"Cool," Oowada said as he turned to walk away. "Good to know you're okay."

"Ah! If it's okay, I'd like to stay for a little while longer," Chihiro told her.

"Sure. Thank you~" Asahina whispered. She was happy to have Chihiro stay with her for a while.

"Alright! I'm leaving it up to you, Fujisaki-kun!" Ishimaru exclaimed before running after Oowada. Chihiro couldn't help but wonder, though. Why did Togami stay for as long as he did?

At this time, Togami thought. He wasn't sure if he felt guilty for what happened. It was her own stupid fault for jumping between them, but he couldn't help but feel somewhat responsible for it happening…

"Whatever," he said as he pulled out his cell phone and looked up a number for a local patisserie. She'll just have to accept his indirect apology.

* * *

><p>*The given name is made up. It was kinda meant to go along with the seasonal theme of the elder Kuzuryuu's given name (even though the younger's name still sounds kinda masculine…)<p>

**According to certain sources, this is her talent. I know, it sounds pretty ridiculous. ._.


End file.
